McCain smacks down Bachmann

“There are Republicans who are committed, like Michele Bachmann, to vote against raising the debt limit under any circumstances,” the 2008 Republican presidential candidate said in an interview with National Review.

McCain opined that Bachmann was acting for political gain “sort of like Senator Obama did.”

In 2006, then-Sen. Barack Obama voted against raising the national debt ceiling, a vote he later acknowledged was politically motivated and described as “a mistake.”

As Robert Costa notes in a National Review piece, Obama at the time said his vote was inspired by “the ‘failure’ of George W. Bush to address the country’s fiscal problems.”

It’s time to get real, McCain argued. “I appreciate the zeal and fervor of my colleagues (but) I want us to get an agreement,” he said. If the debt ceiling is not raised, “Some people say we wouldn’t get the blame — We (Republicans) would get the blame,” McCain warned.

“I really hope our Republican base can understand that we have not lost our zeal or dedication to spending cuts,” McCain added, “but we are aware of the consequences of not having a Plan B in case all else fails.”